High dielectric transparent polymer composite with well-organized carboxymethyl cellulose microfibers in silicon elastomer fabricated under direct current electric field.

The combination of transparency, high dielectric permittivity, biocompatibility and flexibility is highly desired in the embedded capacitors. Herein, we show that assembling biodegradable sodium carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) microfibers in biocompatible silicon elastomer (PDMS) under direct current (DC) electric field enables the production of high dielectric constant composite film with above desired properties. This process leads to the formation of columns of CMC microfibers spanning across the thickness direction, thus generating microfiber depleted regions in between fibers and polymer matrix. The as-prepared composite film with CMC (15 wt%) aligned exhibits a remarkable and an almost sevenfold higher dielectric permittivity as compared to that of the film with CMC randomly dispersed (72 vs 11.4, at 100 Hz). This high CMC loading does not compromise the flexibility and optical transmittance. Interestingly, the compression modulus along the thickness direction increases by >20 times from 16.4 MPa (CMC unaligned) to 339.9 MPa (CMC aligned). We demonstrate a facile strategy of fabricating high dielectric materials combining transparency, biocompatibility, flexibility and compression resistant, making the dielectric materials more versatile. This work shows that biomass derived CMC is a promising filler for high dielectric constant polymer composites benefiting from electric field driven construction of ordered micromorphology.

Application of bracketless invisible orthodontic treatment combined with restoration in patients with anterior esthetics.

To investigate the value of bracketless invisible orthodontic treatment combined with restoration in patients with anterior esthetic restoration. Sixty-two patients requiring esthetic restoration of anterior teeth admitted to our hospital from May 2019 to August 2022 were selected and divided into observation group and control group according to random number table, with 31 cases in each group. The patients in the control group were treated with repair, while patients in the observation group were treated with bracketless invisible correction treatment combined with repair. The patients in both groups were treated with repair. After 2 weeks, dental esthetics, periodontal index related parameters, patients' esthetic acceptance of restorations, and satisfaction were compared. The aesthetic restoration effect of teeth in the observation group was significantly better than that in the control group after treatment, and the difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference in GI, SPD, PLI, and SBI levels before and after treatment between the two groups (P > 0.05). The acceptance rate of prosthesis aesthetics in the observation group was 100.00%, which was significantly higher than that in the control group (83.87%), and the difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05). The satisfaction scores of restoration color, shape and coordination with adjacent teeth in the observation group were higher than those in the control group, and the differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Compared with simple restorative treatment, combined with bracketless invisible orthodontic treatment helps to further improve the esthetic restoration effect of anterior teeth, has less impact on the periodontal health of patients, and has higher patient acceptance and satisfaction.

Assessing the mechanism of energy efficiency and energy poverty alleviation based on environmental regulation policy measures.

This work aims to assess multidimensional energy poverty and energy efficiency for environmental policy measures using data envelopment analysis (DEA), a DEA-Like mathematical composite indicator applied on a dataset based on multiple sets of variables from South Asian economies. The multidimensional energy poverty index (MEPI) is computed to analyze the combining effects and energy poverty in these countries. Simultaneously, South Asia's metropolitan areas' population rose by 130 million between 2001 and 2011 and is projected to expand by approximately 250 million by 2030. The findings reveal that endogenous increasing population shocks account for about 72% of energy use. In contrast, the long-term effects of remittance revenue, economic growth, and urbanization on energy use are approximately 20%, 8.25%, and 0.03%, respectively. This work advocates more coordinated and innovative policies to eliminate energy poverty. It can act as a base for policymakers and government officials to make efficient policies and enforce them properly in the regional power sector. Policies should be designed around a smarter use of biomass for cooking, alternate sources for domestic energy production, increased programs for biomass-based cookstoves, and periodic regional-level energy database development.

Isoprenaline/ß2-AR activates Plexin-A1/VEGFR2 signals via VEGF secretion in gastric cancer cells to promote tumor angiogenesis.

BACKGROUND: The role of stress signals in regulating gastric cancer initiation and progression is not quite clear. It is known that stress signals modulate multiple processes such as immune function, cell migration and angiogenesis. However, few studies have investigated the mechanisms of how stress signals contribute to gastric cancer angiogenesis. METHODS: Here, we used ß2-adrenergic receptor (ß2-AR) agonist isoprenaline to imitate a stress signal and demonstrated the molecular mechanism underlying stress's influence on tumor angiogenesis. RESULTS: We found that isoprenaline stimulated vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) secretion in gastric cancer cells and plexin-A1 expression was induced by human recombinant VEGF165 in both gastric cancer cells and vascular endothelial cells. Furthermore, interfere with plexin-A1 expression in gastric cancer cells influence HUVEC tube formation, migration and tumor growth in vivo. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that isoprenaline stimulate VGEF secretion and subsequently up-regulate the expression of plexin-A1 and VEGFR2 in gastric cancer cells, which form a positive impetus to promote tumor angiogenesis. This study reveals a novel molecular mechanism that a stress signal like isoprenaline may enhance angiogenesis via activating plexin-A1/VEGFR2 signaling pathway in gastric cancer, which may be a potential target in development of an anti-angiogenic therapy for gastric cancer.

Expression of semaphorin 6D and its receptor plexin-A1 in gastric cancer and their association with tumor angiogenesis.

The semaphorin and plexin family of ligands and receptor proteins provides important axon growth and guidance cues required for development. In recent years, studies have expanded their role in the regulation of cardiac morphogenesis and tumorigenesis. However, the mechanism responsible for their role in regulating cancer development and progression has not been clarified. In the present study, semaphorin 6D (Sema6D) and its receptor plexin-A1 were identified to be expressed at high levels in vascular epithelial cells within gastric cancer, and were positively correlated with vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR2). These findings verify our hypothesis that Sema6D and plexin-A1 may be closely associated with tumor angiogenesis. Combined with experimental observations in the MGC803 gastric cancer cell line, it was observed that knocking down plexin-A1 signaling led to a decreased expression of VEGFR2 at the messenger RNA and protein levels. Sema6D recognized and activated plexin-A1, which subsequently activated its downstream target, VEGFR2. The activation of VEGFR2 functioned as a positive regulator of tumor angiogenesis. Our data provided an understanding of the complex signaling cascades involved in the angiogenesis-related pathway in tumor cells. In light of our observations, pharmacological interventions targeting Sema6D/plexin-A1/VEGFR2 signaling may potentially be used as a target for the development of novel anti-angiogenic drugs in gastric cancer.

The impact of TGF-ß1 on the mRNA expression of TßR I, TßR II, Smad4 and the invasiveness of the JEG-3 placental choriocarcinoma cell line.

Human choriocarcinoma is one of the most aggressive malignant tumors characterized by early hematogenous spread to lung and brain tissues, and may be a cause of death in patients. Choriocarcinoma may occur following pregnancy and during implantation; however, trophoblastic invasion in human pregnancy is tightly regulated. The transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-ß1) has been suggested to play a role in controlling this process. In this study, we investigated the impact of TGF-ß1 on invasion, as well as its sites of action in the TGF-ß1/Smad pathway using a JEG-3 choriocarcinoma cell line. Following the treatment of cells with different doses of TGF-ß1, cell invasion was observed. We also detected the expression of TGF-ß receptor type I (TßR I) and TGF-ß receptor type II (TßR II), Smad4, matrix metalloprotease (MMP)-9 and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase (TIMP)-1 in JEG-3 cells. Our data demonstrated that TGF-ß1 promoted the invasive capability of JEG-3 cells depending on the downregulation of TßR I, TßR II, Smad4 and the upregulation of MMP-9 and TIMP-1. These observations suggest that TGF-ß1 may play a critical role in the initiation of the trophoblastic invasion process.

Effects of electromagnetic radiation on spatial memory and synapses in rat hippocampal CA1.

In this study, we investigated the effects of mobile phone radiation on spatial learning, reference memory, and morphology in related brain regions. After the near-field radiation (0.52-1.08 W/kg) was delivered to 8-week-old Wistar rats 2 hours per day for 1 month, behavioral changes were examined using the Morris water maze. Compared with the sham-irradiated rats, the irradiated rats exhibited impaired performance. Morphological changes were investigated by examining synaptic ultrastructural changes in the hippocampus. Using the physical dissector technique, the number of pyramidal neurons, the synaptic profiles, and the length of postsynaptic densities in the CA1 region were quantified stereologically. The morphological changes included mitochondrial degenerations, fewer synapses, and shorter postsynaptic densities in the radiated rats. These findings indicate that mobile phone radiation can significantly impair spatial learning and reference memory and induce morphological changes in the hippocampal CA1 region.

Drug-induced gingival hyperplasia and scaffolds: they may be valuable for horizontal food impaction.

Food impaction is a severe clinical trouble that bothers most people especially middle aged and old people. It is reported that the rate of food impaction is 92.2%. The incidence of 40-59 years old is 98.9%. It is a disease of high prevalence in population. It has influenced people's social intercourse and everyday life because it may cause halitosis, gingivalitis, periodontitis, gingival abscess, alveolar bone absorption, root caries, eventually lead to severe results from teeth loose to deletion and so on. Several reasons are involved with food impaction such as gingival recession, periodontal disease, caries, age, excessive attrition, etc. Food impaction can be divided into two kinds: vertical and horizontal food impaction. At present, there are some clinical methods such as crown or dental filling for vertical one, but horizontal food impaction is still difficult to deal with. Though some methods are being adopted like making crowns and removable obstructers, the problems have never been settled effectively for the injury to teeth and inconvenience of these treatments. Here we put forward a hypothesis that periodontal tissues can regenerate much the same as normal situation by way of using drug to induce gingiva hyperplasia initiatively and implanting scaffolds. Then horizontal food impaction will be cured when the interproximal clearance is filled with periodontal tissues. It will bring the patient hope.